We were
born in Monti della Tolfa and were
brought up in the heart of this
region which is renowned for
its love of horses, rustic meals,
Etruscan archaeology and fine
leather.
Assuntina
earned her University degree in
French Literature at Rome University
and taught for over 20 years.
She has also worked as a Court
Translator. Her passion for
languages helps her
communicate with people from
all over the world.
In 2000, we became the owners of
Fontana del Papa,
a ruined farmhouse with an olive
grove suffering from years of
complete abandon. In
our dreams, we saw a vision of how
it once shined - the olive grove
bearing rich fruit to process the
best olive oil in the world to share
with our visitors and guests. We have worked with tenacity,
passion and love. True, we were
dreaming, but now our dream has
become a reality. The olive grove
has become a beautiful, relaxing
retreat and Fontana del Papa has
been restored to all of its ancient
and imposing beauty...with guests
coming from all over the world.
we speak English, French and,
of course, Italian.
Our Environmental Policy making a
difference
We
take pride in what we are doing.
We
operate in a way that promotes
an awareness and a respect for
our natural environment.
We
support the local community
economically by bringing our
groups to this rural area in
Italy.
We
hire local women to work with us
and to teach our classes.
Our
cooking courses offer regional
cooking, mainly vegetarian,
using recipes and techniques
passed down throughout the
generations.
" Fontana del Papa is not a 5* hotel. In fact it isn't really a hotel at all.... You stay in the family home in lovely light and airy bedrooms with views out over the olive trees and rolling Italian countryside. You eat your meals all together at a long table and can't help but overhear the odd family squabble from the kitchen. Family life goes on around you. I didn't feel as if I was the centre of attention (as you often do in a 5* hotel) but it felt better than that - I felt like I was a guest rather than a paying visitor.
The lessons take place in a normal kitchen .... Our cookery teacher spoke very little English but this made the experience better rather than worse. We all had fun learning cooking-related Italian. Every day we cooked something fabulous based on what was fresh in the veggie garden that day. Every single thing tasted amazing. My favourites were our home made Strozzapreti and our gnocchi with truffles. ...
Assuntina and family took us for passeggiata one day to the local town, on another to meet some of their suppliers, on another to see the local ruins. We took ourselves off one day on the local bus down to the beach.
"
Let us welcome you to our home, our
country and our traditions.
Dedicated to preserving our rich
heritage and traditions through
cooking classes, we invite you to
join us in our family country
home"
From left Adria, Emma,
Matilde, Luca, Andrea, Assuntina
Now We are celebrating
our 13th year anniversary in
cooking courses!
W
e run our first cookery course in October 1998 we had eight guests,
now all around the year we enjoy to
have friends from all over the
world.
-" We are very proud to introduce
you to the heart of a part of our
culture and our country, yet
undiscovered and therefore unspoiled
by mass tourism. We wish to
share a way of life in a land that
remains the heart of Italy - here
where we were born and where we
live. Werecognize
food as a language that expresses
our cultural heritage and invite you
to sit at our table."-
We
have been included
in National Geographic's
book - Food Journeys of a Lifetime. In the list of "Top 10 Cookery
Schools in Italy"
-" We are very proud to 
